Škoda UK Challenges Electric Car Clichés with Playfully British Campaign

Leo UK and Škoda UK are shining a light on outdated and misconceived stereotypes of electric car drivers in new campaign ‘Electric, but Škoda’.

Aimed at drivers who are undecided about switching to an electric vehicle, ‘Electric, but Škoda’ playfully challenges common stereotypes of electric car drivers as ‘tech bros’ and ‘hipsters’. Spanning across TV, Cinema, Social and Digital, the campaign showcases Škoda’s dynamic EV range.

At the core of the campaign is a 60-second film by Leo Burnett. Set in a British cul-de-sac, a family moving to a new neighbourhood are cheekily judged by their neighbours for their electric car. As the family’s EV charging point is installed, the neighbours suspiciously gossip about the family, exchanging rumours that they must be ‘part of a cult’, ‘tree huggers’ or have ‘paid for their car with crypto’ as they drive an electric car. The entire neighbourhood descend on the family's house to watch their arrival, only to discover they’re perfectly ordinary.

45-second social-first films, running across YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, take a playful approach as the neighbourhood characters encourage viewers to skip their stereotyped views of electric cars as ‘hipstery hummus-eating smoothie drinkers’ and ‘tech bros with Bluetooth bellybuttons’ and try an electric vehicle for themselves. Shorter 20-second and 6-second cutdowns are repurposed for social.

Animations of the neighbourhood’s WhatsApp conversations follow the gossip across social channels, engaging Škoda’s online audience by calling out some of the strange stereotypes the UK has about electric cars and their drivers. A further paid social series ‘Ask Škoda’ sees the neighbourhood characters asking questions about electric cars to educate audiences about Škoda’s electric vehicle range and electric cars in general.

Collaborations with a diverse range of social media influencers, including gardening and upcycling experts, will illustrate to Škoda’s online audience how electric vehicles help them to get their tasks done with ease.

The campaign follows Leo Burnett’s 2024 innovative social-first campaign for Škoda ‘The Redditor Edit’ which won two gold Lions and a silver Lion at Cannes.

​Mark Elwood, chief creative officer, Leo UK, said, “Tapping into the everyday conversations of the nation is what we do best. Quintessentially British, we can all recognise certain elements of the characters in our campaign, they live next door or just down the street. This campaign celebrates the quirks that can only be found in British communities – though this comes with an important message, we hope helps everyone see that the switch to electric isn’t that scary after all.”

Kirsten Stagg, marketing director, Škoda UK, said, “There is a trend in the auto industry to treat electric cars like a totally new category, reinforcing this sense of ‘otherness’, which is keeping many people from trading in their petrol and diesel cars. With this campaign, we wanted to give drivers the sense that Škoda makes great cars and some of them just happen to be electric. It positions us as the approachable yet desirable entry point to EVs and continues our strategy of using bold creative to grab attention.”